It was a pivotal night for the Jefferson District. With Albemarle, Powhatan and Western each within striking distance of each other, the meeting with the Patriots and Indians would solve the biggest piece of that puzzle, with the other chips to fall Thursday. Behind a great start and an outstanding effort team defense wise, Albemarle did its part to put itself in position to win a third district title in four years with a 3-1 win over an offensively gifted Powhatan squad, 25-13, 25-20, 19-15, 25-22.
“With the way they can pass and hit, Powhatan is nobody you can take it easy with,” said Patriots coach Mark Ragland. “They did a great job of keeping pressure on us all night long. We’re not real big up front so marking up their hitters is tough for our front row, it’s a tough matchup. Defensively, when the ball is coming down that hard and quick, it’s hard to dig up but we tried to lean on our strengths defensively, serve the ball well and get the ball to the hitters that were putting it away.”
All four sets had similar first halves with neither team getting much separation at just two points difference most of the way. But Albemarle got a big run provided by Katie Smith serving to pull away in the first as they closed out their best set of the night with a 25-13 win.
“I think we just had that senior night energy,” said senior Alexis Duday. “We came out wanting to show everyone what we were capable of, what we’ve learned all season with a big test tonight.”
Things were an awful lot tighter for the final four sets. Albemarle took at 8-4 lead but Powhatan got its largest run of the night with an 11-4 stretch to make it 15-12 in its favor. The Patriots bounced back to go up 18-16 and held on to their 2-point advantage before winning four of the next five points to take a 2-0 lead after the 25-20 victory.
The third set was 13-13 before the Indians made a late move. Behind hitters Julia Goodman and Abigail Nee, Powhatan turned a 17-16 lead into an 8-4 run to force a fourth set with the 25-19 win.
The fourth set saw Albemarle claim a 13-10 advantage but the visitors bounce back to take a 16-15 lead. From there it was just a trade between points with the Patriots taking a slight 19-18 lead. Albemarle forced match point with a 4-2 swing, and held on to win the match with the 25-22 fifth set win.
“I think we were prepared for this because of (last week),” Duday said. “We wanted to send a message that we can hang with the teams that can hang with us. We’re a strong team, but we have to believe that we can put the ball down with the teams that can do the same against us. I think we did that tonight. Every time Powhatan put a ball down we came back and put one back ourselves.”
It was senior night, and the six seniors all showed up big. For starters, the Patriots saw Lindsey Earles back for the first time in over a month.
“She had a concussion and then a toe injury and had no practice for five weeks,” Ragland said. “We didn’t think she’d be able to play but the trainer cleared her and so she was able to go. That’s great to see her come out and play like that. That’s pretty amazing.”
She led Albemarle with a 2.20 passer rating. From their it was Stephanie Lugus’ 16 kills and Duday’s 15 just behind that paved the way offensively.
“We’re best friends and have a really healthy competition that brings out the best in each other,” Duday said. “We play our hearts out and she’s my inspiration to go out there and try and compete. But the team energy, it just made us all want to get after the ball tonight.”
Setter Ellie Benning had 41 assists on the night, keeping the Patriots offense about as balanced as possible. Cindy Yu led the way defensively with her 18 digs. Smith topped the servers with her 13 service points.
About those seniors, this is a program that’s won three of its last four district championships, dating way back when this group was in eighth grade. The Patriots rolled to a Commonwealth title in 2012 and the 2013 JD title when the program switched over into the VHSL’s conference realignment. Now this group sits one win away from a third district title in four years.
“We’re just all out her trying to make a name for ourselves,” Duday said. “This program is just so strong and it really comes down to coach Ragland, just how good he is and how he picks out such a great group of girls each and every year. We’re just trying to keep the tradition strong.”
For Powhatan, Nee finished with 13 kills and 10 digs. Goodman had 13 kills of her own. Kelli Nee had 34 assists.
Albemarle, (22-2, 12-1) finishes up with Fluvanna County on Thursday. Powhatan (17-4-1, 11-3) closes with Charlottesville. Western (18-5-2,11-2) has Orange County. A win for the Patriots over the Flucos wraps up the JD regular season crown.
